Day 19: International Meringues

I feel like I have been running around in circles for months now and it has only been four weeks!  I had my last demonstration and practical class for Basic Pastry yesterday and will now be using the entire afternoon to catch you up on all of my adventures since this past Tuesday.

First of all, someone needs to email me a terrific recipe for Tiramisu because on Tuesday I learned how to make my own lady fingers!  We learned to make a dessert called Charlotte Aux Poires or Pear Charlotte.  It was a beautiful dessert.  We used the batter for ladyfingers to make shapes that we constructed into an edible box.  The filling inside the box was a mixture of sauteed pears and a mousse.  The mousse consisted of a pear flavored whipped cream and an italian meringue.

One important thing I have learned since attending pastry school is that there are different types of meringue.  There are actually three types of meringue-French meringue, Swiss meringue, and Italian meringue.  All meringues are a mixture of beaten egg whites and sugar, but the difference between these three types of meringue is in the method behind how you combine the two ingredients.

French meringue is whipping egg whites until they form peaks and then gradually adding sugar while continuing to whip the mixture into a glossy, shiny state.  Since the mixture was made with raw ingredients you have to cook the meringue before eating it.  Swiss meringue is egg whites and sugar beaten in a bowl over the heat of a bain marie and then constantly whisked until cooled.  Italian meringue is a little more complicated and definitely the tastiest.  For Italian meringue you whisk the egg whites until they form stiff peaks, but then you add very hot sugar syrup and keep whisking until you get a shiny delicious meringue that can be eaten right away and used as decoration or frosting on many cakes.

The sugar syrup is a simple syrup made from equal parts sugar and water.  You must bring the syrup to a boil and then continue cooking until it comes to a "soft ball stage."  Then you may add a flavoring or liqueur to the syrup if desired and then you whip the syrup into the meringue.  To determine whether your syrup is at the soft ball stage you put the tips of your thumb and index finger in very cold water, then you dip the tips of your fingers in the hot syrup pot all the way to the bottom, and then you immediately put your fingers back into the cold water.  When you take your fingers out of the cold water for the second time you rub them together  and they should form a "soft ball" of sugar between them.  Once the sugar is in this soft ball stage you know the syrup is hot enough to put into the egg whites and finish your meringue.

My Pear Charlotte

A close-up of my marzipan rose.

I loved the way the Pear Charlotte looked when it was all put together, but again I'm just not a fan of pear flavored desserts.  I think this would be especially delicious with cherries or peaches.  While we have not done much work with berries up until now I wonder if this could also have been made with raspberries or blueberries.  I cannot wait to have an oven to finally be able to try these recipes out at home and make my own adjustments.

Until next time Au Revoir and Bon Appetit!